<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>By Any Other Name by ArtemisRayne</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23218624">By Any Other Name</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtemisRayne/pseuds/ArtemisRayne'>ArtemisRayne</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>May Look at a King - A Newsies Felisian AU [31]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Felisians, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Backstory, Cat/Human Hybrids, Childhood Trauma, Established Relationship, Felisian!Jack, Felisians, Fluff, Identity, M/M, Names, Self-Image</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 10:54:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,948</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23218624</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtemisRayne/pseuds/ArtemisRayne</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It's a question that's been lingering in the back of Davey's mind for months, just waiting for their lives to calm down enough that it felt safe to ask. Finally, his curiosity gets the best of him. "Jack, how'd you pick your name?"</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>David Jacobs/Jack Kelly</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>May Look at a King - A Newsies Felisian AU [31]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1070205</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>81</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>By Any Other Name</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>The real world sucks so much I needed to get back to my soft bois. This is just a short little one, a piece of backstory I've been wanting to write for a while. </p><p>That said, if anyone has prompts or suggestions they want to see in this 'verse, please let me know. I miss this world, and since the whole world is stuck in quarantine for now, I'm home with nothing better to do than write.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p></p><div>
  <p></p>
  <div class="resolved">
    <p> </p>
  </div>
</div><p>It's a question that's been hovering at the back of Davey's mind for ages now, but it takes him months to get up the courage to actually ask it. The whole topic is buried in so much darkness that Davey can't make himself bring it up. Not while things are still so off-kilter. He might want to know, but not at the cost of Jack's feelings. So despite his curiosity, Davey waits. </p><p>The last weekend in February, the pair are slumped together on the sofa, half-studying and half-watching the movie they turned on for background noise. It's lazy and comfortable and domestic, and Davey doesn't even mind that he's barely absorbing the notes he's supposed to be reviewing. It feels nice just to feel normal again. </p><p>A bolt of black fur shoots across the apartment, darting under the bed and then rocketing back the other direction just as fast. Davey glances up from his notebook just in time to see the kitten leap onto the coffee table. She lands on a pile of discarded mail, momentum carrying her clean across the surface of the table, and Lucy crashes to the floor with a yowl amid an avalanche of envelopes and ads. </p><p>"Psycho puff," Jack says, chuckling as the kitten finds her feet and tears off into the bathroom. "She's so fuckin' weird." </p><p>Laughing, Davey sets aside his notebook and leans down to gather up the mail. None of it's important, just the stuff that was glanced at and then set aside to be thrown in the recycle bin later. Davey doesn't bother trying to sort it, shuffling it into a pile and transferring it back to the table. He's about to sit up and return to his studying when his gaze lands on the topmost envelope, and it makes him pause. </p><p>Two words. Two simple words printed above their address. And finally, curiosity wins. </p><p>"Hey Jacky, can I ask you a question?" Davey says. </p><p>The felisian glances over from his textbook, ears cocked forward attentively. "Course. What's up?" </p><p>Davey bites his lip, turning the question over in his head as he tries to find the best way to phrase it. Is there a best way to ask this sort of thing? Oh, what the hell, just say it. "How'd you pick your name?" </p><p>"My na-?" Amber eyes widen in surprise, and Jack makes a noise of comprehension. "Oh. Gotcha." </p><p>"Sorry, you don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," Davey scrambles nervously. He can still remember the pain in Jack's voice when he'd first told Davey about it; about his birth name and the horrible reason he'd changed it. That other name will forever be branded into Davey's mind after the events of last autumn. <em>Francis John Sullivan.</em> One name shared by two men, the whole thing shrouded in so much darkness that the scars will never go away. </p><p>"Relax, Dave," Jack says reassuringly. He reaches over and squeezes Davey's hand, successfully pulling the younger man out of his anxious spiraling before it can start. "It's fine, promise. Was expecting it ages ago, honestly." </p><p>Davey shrugs, settling back into the sofa cushion. "I figured it wasn't something you'd want to talk about. With the circumstances and all."</p><p>Jack smiles and leans in to give Davey a quick kiss. "It's sweet, you thinkin' of that stuff," he says, bumping his nose affectionately. "'Specially 'cause I know you, so I know the curiosity must'a been killin' you." </p><p>And Davey thinks it's probably a testament to how much their relationship has shaped them both that Davey smirks and responds, "Well, you know what they say about curiosity and cats..." </p><p>The felisian barks a loud laugh, ears flicking as he throws his head back. "Cheeky," he teases. Jack tips his head thoughtfully, weight settling more comfortably against Davey's side. "It's not really that interesting. Got a pretty normal name."</p><p>"Maybe, but it just makes me wonder," says Davey. "I mean, of all the possible names in the world, you picked Jack Kelly. There had to have been a reason, right?" </p><p>"Was more spur-the-moment than I like to admit," the felisian replies with a grin. "Had been fightin' for so long for them to let me change it - it's this whole big legal mess, 'specially when you're a kid - so when they finally said I could, I just <em>picked</em>. My last name, I didn't actually pick that one. Caseworker suggested it. Kelly was my mom's name before she got married, and I couldn't think of anything better." </p><p>Davey nods, absorbing that. It makes sense. After all, while Jack doesn't have much in the way of fond memories of his birth parents, he hated his mother far less. Especially then, not long after seeing his father kill his mother for her attempt at protecting Jack - it makes sense Jack would feel safer switching to her name instead. </p><p>In the end, his last name isn't the part Davey's most curious about, though. People define themselves by what they're called. Even just Davey's little decision to go by Davey instead of David is his own way of labeling himself independently. "So where'd Jack come from?" he asks. </p><p>Jack's smile turns self-conscious, and he ducks his ears. "It's kinda dumb, but it's from a tv show." The felisian clears his throat, and Davey's surprised to see a flush spreading up his neck. "Was a, uh, a cartoon, ach'lly."</p><p>"Wait, you're serious?" Davey asks incredulously, pivoting sideways to face Jack better. </p><p>"I was eight," Jack defends, and now the pink floods his cheeks. "Figured I wanted to be called somethin' cool and it ain't like I was old 'nough to have, like, real-world heroes. 'Cept maybe John Wayne, but I didn't wanna be called John; that used to be my middle name." </p><p>Davey holds up a hand appeasingly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh," he says. "I was just surprised. That wasn't what I was expecting. Sorry." He leans in to sneak a kiss, and it makes the felisian's ears ease back up toward their natural position. Smiling, Davey nudges his knee against Jack's. "So tell me about this Jack from the cartoons then. What was the show? I won't laugh, I promise." </p><p>"Shouldn't tell ya, bein' so mean to me," Jack teases. Davey shoves his shoulder playfully, and Jack sticks out his tongue. They both dissolve into giggles. "Was this show called <em>Justice Jack</em>," the felisian says abruptly. "Was just a kid that was-" </p><p>"A superhero," Davey finishes, eyes wide. "I remember that one. That was the show with the kid that was raised by magical ninjas or something, right?" </p><p>"And then he tried to go to high school like a normal kid," Jack agrees, nodding. "So he was always bouncin' from saving the world to tryna be a normal kid and all. Yeah, that's it." </p><p>Davey breathes out an amused sound, eyeing his boyfriend thoughtfully. "And that's who you named yourself after?"</p><p>Jack shrugs, smile slanting into something self-deprecating. "Kid that felt like a freak and just wanted to be normal. Yeah, guess I could relate. Or maybe I just wanted to think I was tough enough to not get beat up on no more." </p><p>Frowning, Davey considers the sudden tension in the felisian's features. "No, I don't think that's all it was," he says. Jack raises an eyebrow questioningly. "Because he got beat up a lot in the show, didn't he? Fighting all those supervillains. But in the end, he always found a way to win. To come back and keep fighting even if he lost the first time." Davey cups Jack's cheek in his palm, turning him to meet his gaze. "Sound familiar?"</p><p>The felisian huffs. "Ya always go lookin' for better things in me than what's there," he says softly. </p><p>"Or maybe," Davey continues like he didn't say anything, "it's because that Jack was always stepping up to protect the people who couldn't fight back? Whether he was standing up against villains or school bullies. He saw that even if he wanted to just be normal, he was something <em>more</em>, and he used that to make things better for others." </p><p>"Hm, your fancy metaphors are gettin' a bit stretched now, doncha think?" Jack says, but his tone is fond. </p><p>Davey smirks at the comment but doesn't respond. He reaches to make sure Jack's tail is out of the way before shifting to straddle the felisian's lap. "Or maybe," Davey says, dropping his arms onto Jack's shoulders, "it's because that Jack just wanted people to accept him for how he was, not the normal kid he was pretending to be or the superhero the other kids saw on tv. He wanted someone to just see him as Jack, and think that was still good enough." </p><p>"<em>Or maybe</em>," Jack interjects, exaggerating the words, "I was an eight-year-old boy who thought superheroes were cool. Ya know, like <em>all</em> eight-year-old boys?" </p><p>Laughing, Davey nods. "That's fair," he concedes. "Superheros are pretty cool." He ducks down to kiss Jack, grinning. "But for the record, I think you're pretty cool too." </p><p>Jack snorts. "Cool? I'm fuckin' awesome." Looping his arms around Davey's waist, the felisian pitches them sideways until they're stretched out across the sofa, tucked close together on their sides. "How else ya think I snagged a fella like you?" Jack asks, grinning in that daring, slantwise way that always makes Davey's stomach flip. </p><p>"Someone's laying it on thick tonight," Davey notes. </p><p>"Not yet, but I could be," the felisian says, bouncing his eyebrows suggestively. Davey laughs, shaking his head. At the same time, he can't stop himself from sliding the hand on Jack's hip beneath his shirt. Jack shivers, tail thumping loudly against the sofa when he twitches. "That tickles," he whines. </p><p>"You're ticklish everywhere," Davey counters. "That's not my fault." Jack scrunches up his nose, flitting his right ear indignantly. At the same time, he sweeps his tail up to curl on Davey's hip. Smiling, Davey moves his hand up to brush his thumb over the felisian's cheek tenderly. "You know, it's really hard to imagine you as anything other than Jack." </p><p>"Yeah?" Jack asks. "I like it better than Frankie or Junior too." </p><p>"I've always hated the name Junior," Davey says. "It feels like the parents aren't giving the kid their own identity. Like their most important characteristic is being a copy of their parent." </p><p>Jack hums thoughtfully. "Never thought 'bout it that way, but yeah, can see whatcha mean," he agrees. "I mean, that's sorta why I got a new name, right? So I wasn't just his kid no more."</p><p>"No, now you're my superhero," says Davey warmly. "My wonderful boyfriend who wants justice for the world." Jack huffs a laugh, rolling his eyes. Davey cradles the felisian's jaw and draws him in for a soft kiss. "I'm not teasing, Jacky. The name really does suit you."</p><p>"Like it even better when ya call me Jacky like that," Jack says, grinning. </p><p>"Lots of people call you Jacky," Davey says. </p><p>Jack smirks, bumping his nose against Davey's. "Sure, but it sounds real sweet when ya say it." He sneaks a kiss. "And sometimes, when ya say it, sounds really sexy too." </p><p>Laughing, Davey shakes his head. "You mean-" He lowers his pitch and says, a bit breathy, "<em>Jacky</em>." </p><p>The felisian's grin stretches, and his ovoid pupils widen. "Yeah, like that." Nuzzling Davey's neck, he adds, "So, curiosity satisfied now?" </p><p>"Very much," Davey says, nodding. He snuggles closer, smile taking on a mischievous slant. "Also pretty sure I'm ready for a break from homework. <em>Jacky.</em>" And a delighted, roguish look flashes over the felisian's face when he surges forward to kiss Davey again.</p><p></p><div>
  <p> </p>
</div>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>